Synthetica by Rachel Pattinson Page A

begin with,” Anais said,
nettled, but Xander only smiled. He gently put a finger under her
chin, so she was looking up into his dark eyes.
    “ There's
always a way, Anais. Just because you didn't get the job you wanted
straight away doesn't mean you never will. Some things happen for a
reason. Maybe you're meant to work at the factory, make them realise
what a shithole it is, and get it shut down,” Xander said. Anais
managed a half smile.
    “ Easy
for you to say,” she tried to match his light tone. “Coming from
someone who got their first choice. Maybe you and Dalla should get
together, you're obviously meant to be.”
    “ Maybe,”
Xander said, but there was a mischievous light in his eyes. “But I
prefer grumpy, pink haired girls who won't share their ice cream.”
    This time Anais did laugh, but it was quickly muffled as Xander
pressed his lips to hers. She felt the last of her worry drain away
as she kissed him back, revelling in the feel of his mouth against
hers. They quickly pulled away at the sound of Dalla's boots
clicking across the floor.
    “ Don't
stop on my account,” Dalla said as she ate the last of her own ice
cream, smirking.
    “ Did
you have fun today?” Xander asked her, turning towards her,
although he kept an arm around Anais, pulling her closer to him.
Dalla beamed at him.
    “ Oh
it was amazing! I can't believe the kind of gear you have here! I
didn't even know half of the software was even available! I don't
suppose there's anyway you could get me a copy of the latest version
of Xiscor, is there, so I can maybe practice at home?” she asked
eagerly.
    “ Nope,”
Xander shook his head. “All the computers here are encrypted, so
you can't access any of the files or systems offsite. Even if I did
manage to get you a copy, it's probably coded so it wouldn't work
properly on your computer.”
    Anais zoned out as Dalla began to talk about the different computer
programs she'd seen so far that day. With Xander's arm around her,
his hand gently tracing circles on her arm, it was hard for her to
still feel angry at Mrs Persimmon. She felt slightly better after
Xander's joke, as though it wasn't as serious or as depressing
working at the factory as she thought it would be.
    She
heard a ping and a little envelope flashed up in her vision. She opened it to
find a message from her dad:

    Anais, where are you? Thought you and
D would be home hours ago! How did CA go?? Dad xx

    With a jolt, Anais looked at the time in her eyesight – it was
almost four. With the city curfew not coming into force until ten,
normally her parents would be happy for her to stay out, but Anais
had completely forgotten about the murder and the worry it had
evoked in her father. She hastily composed a message back,
reassuring her dad that she was with Dalla and that she'd set off
home now.
    “ Sorry
guys,” she said, cutting across Dalla and Xander's conversation
about different methods of coding. She looked up at Xander. “I've
got to go. Dad's going to go crazy in a minute, if I don't get home
soon.”
    “ Oh,
but, we haven't seen the research labs yet!” Dalla pleaded.
    “ I
thought they'd be off-limits?” Anais raised an eyebrow at Xander,
who smiled sweetly.
    “ They
are. But I can at least show you where they are. Besides, I have a
feeling that she'll pop if I don't,” Xander grinned as he jerked
his head towards Dalla. Anais felt a pang of guilt at staying out
even later, but she waved it aside. She'd be home soon enough, and
Dalla would be with her on the journey home if her parents were
worried about her travelling alone from downtown.
    “ Alright,
but I've got to go straight afterwards,” Anais said. Dalla
practically bounced out of the room in her enthusiasm, while Anais
and Xander followed more slowly.
    Xander steered them towards the row of lifts that would take them
down to the labs. There were only four lifts, compared to the large
bank of them that had brought them up to the observation deck